[Ebook Việt Hoá] The indestructible houseplant – Slipper orchid

SLIPPER ORCHID

Orchids, indestructible? If you doubt these two words can ever be said together, you have never tried a tropical slipper orchid. Mine is less bother than your average goldfish. Actually, I should use the plural, as over the years I have amassed quite a collection of tropical slipper orchids. I cannot resist these charming elf-faced flowers during the duration of their prolonged bloom stint, which continues for many months. Once you have a paphiopedilum, it’s a keeper. If you can patiently host it during the time when flowers are not in the cards—that is, most of the summer—chances are good that you will see blossom spikes developing sometime in late autumn and throughout winter. I know most orchids have the reputation for being prima donnas that require an emerald green thumb, but paphiopedilum is the exception. If you give it a chance in your home, I promise you won’t regret it.

Not only is this orchid painless, but it will also be one of your triumphs. The blossoms put on a leisurely, graceful presentation starting from a goose-necked bud that has one of the most seductively slow windups you will ever experience. Waiting for a tropical lady’s slipper to open will leave you panting in anticipation. By the time the flower begins to unfurl, you will be mopping the brow of your great expectations. And tropical lady’s slippers never disappoint. The art-installation-caliber blossoms are 3 inches (7 cm) in diameter and easily seen from a distance. They are the stuff of poetry. Paphiopedilum maudiae group is the easiest of the easies. The flowers are cream with pale green stripes, and they look like grinning elves complete with caps. The beauty of this particular group is that the foliage has dark green mottling over a paler green base, giving you something to enjoy while waiting for the main show. If you want something flashier, there are plenty of lady’s slippers with parrot green and burgundy flowers. But lady’s slippers have the standard-fare green orchid foliage that is thick and sprouting from the base.

A close second to paphiopedilum is moth orchid, phalaenopsis. At one time you could not open an interior decorating magazine without spotting a moth orchid lurking somewhere in a photograph. I envisioned stylists driving around with a moth orchid in the passenger seat, a constant companion ready to jump into any picture. Any living thing that can be dragged around to this extent is bound to be a survivor.

The only challenge connected with a moth orchid is achieving repeat bloom. But future flowers are just gravy because the first string of blossoms is sufficient to make a purchase totally worthwhile. When a moth orchid blooms, expect to be thrilled nonstop for several months as each flower on the spike unfolds. The full-size versions might have four or five blossoms, each 3 inches (7 cm) wide, looking like a swarm of moths ascending. But the new cool is the miniature introductions with three to four flowers about the size of a quarter. And the color range has gone far beyond the original pure white flowers to include pinks and reds with stripes and dapples. The biggest thrill is the boasting rights. You can be a rank beginner and still croon about your bounty of orchid blossoms.

Where many people get shaky with orchids is the growing medium. Although orchids are grown in everything from Styrofoam noodles to pebbles, mixing Coco-chips (they come as a brick that you soak in water) with about a tablespoon of horticultural charcoal works for me. The most difficult part of the process is freeing the orchid from its original container because the roots tend to adhere to the sides. When you loosen it from the plastic pot in which it was purchased, the previous medium will probably fall from the roots. Just spread the newly liberated roots out in a new container. I usually go about twice the size of the original pot. Tuck the Coco-chip–charcoal medium around the roots, making sure to bury them.

Because of my room-for-one-more houseplant policy, I rarely bring my population explosion to the sink for watering, but I make an exception for the orchids. I grow mine on plant stands in the bathroom, close to the sink. Every three to four days I bring them to the sink, let water run through the bark, and allow the pot to drain for a couple of minutes before returning it to the plant stand. The sieve action is fine with these orchids, because that’s the sort of treatment they enjoy in their home jungles. The bathroom is also ducky because it is the warmest room in my chilly house, and they prefer to grow at 65°F (18°C) for daytime temperatures with just a slight dip at night. My morning shower also raises their humidity. The bathroom faces east, which is ideal for an orchid, although I keep them away from the panes because they burn easily in bright light. If your bathroom windows are otherwise monopolized (or nonexistent), consider running a humidifier or using a pebble tray to increase the humidity in other parts of the house. This will make them happier, but high humidity is not a deal-breaker for these particular orchids. In fact, tropical lady’s slippers and moth orchids are delightfully congenial. They make champions of us all.

the orchid from its original container because the roots tend to adhere to the sides. When you loosen it from the plastic pot in which it was purchased, the previous medium will probably fall from the roots. Just spread the newly liberated roots out in a new container. I usually go about twice the size of the original pot. Tuck the Coco-chip–charcoal medium around the roots, making sure to bury them.

Because of my room-for-one-more houseplant policy, I rarely bring my population explosion to the sink for watering, but I make an exception for the orchids. I grow mine on plant stands in the bathroom, close to the sink. Every three to four days I bring them to the sink, let water run through the bark, and allow the pot to drain for a couple of minutes before returning it to the plant stand. The sieve action is fine with these orchids, because that’s the sort of treatment they enjoy in their home jungles. The bathroom is also ducky because it is the warmest room in my chilly house, and they prefer to grow at 65°F (18°C) for daytime temperatures with just a slight dip at night. My morning shower also raises their humidity. The bathroom faces east, which is ideal for an orchid, although I keep them away from the panes because they burn easily in bright light. If your bathroom windows are otherwise monopolized (or nonexistent), consider running a humidifier or using a pebble tray to increase the humidity in other parts of the house. This will make them happier, but high humidity is not a deal-breaker for these particular orchids. In fact, tropical lady’s slippers and moth orchids are delightfully congenial. They make champions of us all.